IRFU welcomes dialogue as plans to ‘eat the elephant’ begin

If rugby is to follow the sports that are returning earlier, such as English Premier League football, then it will need to implement widespread player testing for the coronavirus, and that will come at a high financial cost.

Chief executive of IRFU Philip Browne has welcomed the start of a dialogue between Irish sports and public health decision-makers.

The August return date for rugby under the Government’s roadmap has been a source of frustration for the IRFU, but chief executive Philip Browne welcomed the start of a dialogue between Irish sports and public health decision-makers.

Deemed a close-physical-contact sport alongside boxing by the Government, rugby cannot resume from the Covid-19 lockdown until the fifth and final phase of the roadmap on August 10, while other contact sports such as Gaelic Games and football have been given the green light for phase four, from July 20.